1 Forum of Labour Market Ministers Supply and Demand Workshop STATISTICS CANADA LABOUR MARKET DATA SOURCES Vancouver, October 2007

2 Outline  Organization of the Labour Market Information at Statistics Canada  Description of the major data sources  Methodology and notes of interest  Strength and weaknesses  Products and Access

Vancouver, October LABOUR SUPPLY AND DEMAND Main information sources In the labour force UnemployedEmployed Employees Self- employed Employing businesses Jobs Job vacancies LABOUR DEMAND LABOUR SUPPLY (actual) Population (15+, in scope) Not in labour force LABOUR SUPPLY (potential) SEP H WES LFS Census SLID WES Employment Insurance

4 Labour Force Survey

Vancouver, October Labour Force Survey  Data strength and limitations  New content  Aboriginals  Immigrants

Vancouver, October 2007 Why do we have a Labour Force Survey? Historical origin:  To provide information on the labour market integration of soldiers returning from WWII (1945);  Source of the “official” unemployment rate;  Quarterly survey until 1952; now monthly  Mandatory survey

Vancouver, October The Role of the LFS  Economic monitoring:  One of the most important measures of the overall performance of the Canadian economy  Backbone of the household survey program  Employment Insurance (EI):  The regulations of the EI Act designate the LFS as the source of monthly unemployment rates for the 58 EI Regions used in the administration of the EI Program  More than eight billion dollars per year are transferred to individuals on the basis of these rates

Vancouver, October Sampling Plan  All persons 15 years of age and over;  Selection of approximately 54,000 dwellings in Canada (110,000 persons);  Each month, 1/6 of respondents are new; the other 5/6 have been interviewed previously.

Vancouver, October Population (15+, in scope) In the labour force Not in labour force Employed Unemployed LFS – data collected Socio-demographic characteristics (age, sex marital status, education) Geography  Job search methods  Type of work sought  Duration of job search  Activity prior to unemployment  Reason for leaving last job  Some information on last job (if in last year)  Main activity  Interest in working  Date last worked For main job (job worked for the most hours):  Occupation/industry  Class of worker *  Job tenure & permanency *  Full/part-time & reason *  Hours (usual, actual, overtime) *  Underemployment  Earnings *  Firm size *, Union coverage * Some information on second job Multiple jobholder

Vancouver, October Criteria for Sample Allocation The CV (coefficient of variation) of the unemployment rate cannot exceed:  2% for Canada  7% for each province  15% for the three-month moving average in employment insurance regions and census metropolitan areas (12 EIRs and 6 CMAs)  25% for the three-month moving average in economic regions

Vancouver, October Need to consider sample variation  Sampling variability: variability results from using a sample of population of interest 0.5% of dwellings in Canada indicates how closely an estimate approximates the true value for the population  Sampling variability MUST be considered when making inferences from LFS data

Vancouver, October Important not to take too much stock in month-to-month changes

Vancouver, October Need to consider the trend also

Vancouver, October Things to consider  Make sure to assess month-to-month changes  Look at trend  Consider other factors (ex. unseasonably warm weather)  A real change can be a one time occurrence too (ex. Ontario blackout, ice storm, etc.)  Must also consider the level of detail for which you are looking at month-to-month changes  the more disaggregated, the rarer the population, the higher the sampling variability

Vancouver, October Need to consider the effect that seasonal patterns can have on data  Should not look at month-to-month employment changes in unadjusted series to learn about recent employment trends  Sometimes may be more appropriate to use unadjusted data

Vancouver, October Make decision based on questions you want to answer

Two new questions added to identify Aboriginal Peoples in LFS Aboriginal identity questions added, starting late 2002 in Alberta, 2003 in Territories, 2004 in other western provinces: 1) Are you an Aboriginal person, that is, North American Indian, Métis or Inuit? 2) Are you North American Indian, Métis or Inuit?

Vancouver, October 2007 Aboriginal data for remaining provinces Turned on identity question for remaining provinces in January 2007 First step will be to evaluate quality of estimates First release scheduled for fall 2008

Vancouver, October Immigrant data collected by the LFS  Starting in January 2006, 5 questions about immigrants were added to the LFS  Objective: To identify immigrants in the LFS and to facilitate analysis of the labour market outcomes of immigrants  Additionally, immigrants also asked all regular LFS questions that were applicable

Vancouver, October LFS Immigrant Questions 1. In what country was … born? 2. Is…now, or has he/she ever been, a landed immigrant in Canada? 3. In what year did…first become a landed immigrant? 4. In what month? (asked only if landed in previous 5 years) 5. In what country did…complete his/her highest degree, certificate or diploma?

Vancouver, October Release of immigrant data  First release on labour market outcome on September 10 th, 2007  Scheduled releases of outcomes by country of birth and country of education for Winter 2008  Scheduled release of quality of work for Summer 2008  Data available through client services

Vancouver, October More information 

Vancouver, October LABOUR SUPPLY AND DEMAND Main information sources In the labour force UnemployedEmployed Employees Self- employed Employing businesses Jobs Job vacancies LABOUR DEMAND LABOUR SUPPLY (actual) Population (15+, in scope) Not in labour force LABOUR SUPPLY (potential) SEP H WES LFS Census SLID WES Employment Insurance

24 Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours

Vancouver, October  The employer collects income tax on employees’ pay  It makes remittances to the CRA  Once a month: 30% of employment  Twice a month:10% of employment  Four times a month:60% of employment  2 questions added to CRA remittance form in 1993:  employment  gross payroll Census of Administrative Data (1) SEPH

Vancouver, October  Includes any amount in box 14 of T4 slip (employment income)  Self-employed workers: most are excluded  Includes income tax remittances that self-employed workers make for a salary that they have paid themselves.  Excludes tax remittances that self-employed workers make on behalf of their business, for business income. Census of Administrative Data (2) SEPH

Vancouver, October  A Business Number (BN) may have several Payroll Deduction accounts (PD accounts).  This is an accounting decision made by the business.  The frequency of the pay for each PD account is not recorded on the form.  Thus, it is not obvious which forms to use:  30 automated rules solve most cases.  The payroll amount on the form represents the total for the group of employees in the PD account. Census of Administrative Data (3) SEPH

Vancouver, October Data Processing  Choice of forms for evaluating the number of employees (BN-PD) – 30 automated rules  Imputation of data  Missing forms  Pay and employment values not reported  Inconsistent values  Use of the Business Register (BR) to:  aggregate to the level of the statistical enterprise  allocate complex enterprises (more than one province or industry)  Estimates by province and industry, analysis and corrections SEPH

Vancouver, October Potential for Non-sampling Errors  Response and/or capture errors  Choice of form  Imputation: effects measured by CVs  Allocation by province and industry based on BR  profile  industrial coding  Problem of comparability of period with SEPH

Vancouver, October Major conceptual differences driving your choice LFSSEPH Type of surveyHousehold surveyBusiness survey Target populationCivilian non-institutional population age 15 and over Those receiving a T4 Exclusions - Territories (but an economic region is published separately) - Persons living on Indian reserves - Institutionalized population - Members of Canadian Armed Forces - Most self-employed - Agriculture, fishing and trapping - Private household services - Religious organizations - Members of Canadian Armed Forces Reference periodCalendar week that includes the 15 th of the month Last pay period of the reference month. Differs from one employer to the other. Employment concept Estimate of employed persons (multiple jobholder are counted only once). Estimate of jobs (each job occupied by the same person is counted). Wage conceptEstimate of usual wages or salary of employees, at their main job. Estimate of average (regular) earnings per head (or per paid hour)

Vancouver, October LFSSEPH GeographyProvince/territory of residenceProvince/territory of employment Demographic characteristics Includes age, sex, marital status, educational attainment, and family characteristics. None. Industry detail16 classes.About 300 classes (up to 4 digit NAICS) Job characteristics Includes hours worked, job tenure, occupation, involuntary part-time employment, multiple job-holding, absence from work, union status of employees, number of employees at their workplace, and the temporary or permanent nature of their job. Type of employee (paid by the hour, salaried, other). Geographic details Canada, provinces, census metropolitan area (28), economic regions (72). Canada, provinces and territories. Major conceptual differences driving your choice

Vancouver, October TRACKING LABOUR-MARKET PERFORMANCE  Emphasis on LFS  Demographic and other qualitative info  Includes self-employment  Can measure employment and unemployment rates  In Canada, greater investment in household survey  Supporting info from SEPH  Industry detail  Must remove self-employed to compare to LFS  In-depth analysis of differences currently ongoing

Vancouver, October More information 

Vancouver, October LABOUR SUPPLY AND DEMAND Main information sources In the labour force UnemployedEmployed Employees Self- employed Employing businesses Jobs Job vacancies LABOUR DEMAND LABOUR SUPPLY (actual) Population (15+, in scope) Not in labour force LABOUR SUPPLY (potential) SEP H WES LFS Census SLID WES Employment Insurance

Employment Insurance Statistics (EI)

Vancouver, October Purpose and Description  To provide data on the number of beneficiaries and benefits paid from the Employment Insurance Program  Data sourced from administrative files of HRSDC  microfile of beneficiaries  summary file on claims and benefits paid EI

Vancouver, October Population (15+, in scope) In the labour force Not in labour force Employed Unemployed Employment Insurance – what? Information available on EI recipients:  Age, sex  Geography (detailed)  Claim status (received, allowed)  Benefit paid (type, amount)  If: disqualified, disentitled EI recipients could be classified here by labour surveys if they report they are not looking for a job. Framework does not work well for EI recipients. They are not equivalent to the unemployed. Would be EI recipients only if they apply for EI and are eligible. EI recipients could be classified here by labour surveys if they report having a job. EI

Vancouver, October More information 

Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID)

Vancouver, Oct Original Objectives of SLID To understand and measure changes in the economic well-being of Canadians and factors affecting these changes. Also the main source of cross-sectional income data, replacing Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) in SLID

Vancouver, Oct Survey Design  Longitudinal data, among the first at Statistics Canada  Household Panel Survey: from LFS frame  Target population: families/individuals in the 10 provinces (non-institutional, off-reserve)  Survey Content to measure Economic Well-Being:  Labour market and income data  Family composition and its changes  Housing  Variety of additional “explanatory” variables: Education, Geography, Activity Limitation SLID

Vancouver, Oct Survey Design  Households from two “panels”  Each panel remains in the survey for six consecutive years  A new panel is introduced every three years  Reference year 2004: third panel completed  Reference year 2005: fourth panel introduced SLID

Vancouver, Oct Overlapping Sample Design Reference Year Panel 1 Panel 2 Panel 3 Panel 4 Panel 5 SLID

Vancouver, Oct Content & Questionnaires  One interview conducted between January and March following the reference year  Interview/questionnaire content:  Preliminary background information  Labour Market Experiences, Educational Activity, Family Relationships, and Income  Over 80% of respondents give permission to access their income tax files in place of income questions  Previously (up to reference year 2003), SLID conducted two interviews each year: January to March for all but income questions; and May for income questions SLID

Vancouver, Oct Who is interviewed?  Longitudinal respondents:  All persons aged 16+ in household selected in the first year of a panel  People are interviewed for six years  Movers are followed  Cross sectional respondents:  All longitudinal respondents, and their cohabitants  Interview content:  Income information collected for persons 16+  Labour, education collected for persons 16 to 69  Housing variables collected for every household  Disability collected for every person SLID

Vancouver, Oct Organization of content SLID

Vancouver, Oct More information

Workplace and Employee Survey (WES)

Vancouver, Oct Purpose and Description  To study how businesses respond to economic and technological change, particularly in human resources WES

Vancouver, Oct Methodology  Annual longitudinal survey of businesses and their employees 1996 Pilot Survey 1st wave of longitudinal survey  Panel of businesses to be retained in subsequent surveys (up to 8 years)  WES is sun setting WES

Vancouver, Oct Survey Sample  Sample of 7,000 employers selected from the Statistics Canada register of businesses interviewed at the business  Sample of 25,000 employees selected from sample of businesses interviewed from CATI site WES

Vancouver, Oct Survey Data  Business characteristics industry, revenues and expenditures, business strategies, human resource policies, unionisation  Business outcomes growth, organisational change, technological change, human resource policy shifts  Employee characteristics age, sex, education, training, occupation, work history  Employee outcomes wage, training, use of technology WES

Vancouver, Oct Survey Outputs  Publication of key findings  Special in-depth reports on business and employee outcomes  Micro-data files researchers public use WES

Vancouver, Oct More information 

Census 2006

Vancouver, Oct Census Labour force questions  14 questions on the census long form questionnaire  Labour force activity in reference week  Job characteristics  Work activity since January 1 st of the reference year

Vancouver, Oct Labour force activity in reference week 34. Paid hours 35. Absence/layoff 36. New job 37. Looked for work 38. Availability Work activity filter question 39. When last worked Industry Name of firm; - Section, plant, dept. 41. Kind of business Occupation 42. Work or occupation 43. Main duties Class of worker 44. Type 45. Incorporation status Work activity in reference year 49. Weeks worked 50. Full-part time 2006 Census Labour Force Questions

Vancouver, Oct  Week preceding Census Day : Applies to labour force activity questions. This is the reference period for deriving labour force activity.  January 1st, 2005 to the week preceding Census Day: applies to industry, occupation and class of worker questions.  Year 2005: applies to weeks worked and full-time/part-time questions. Time references

Vancouver, Oct LFS-Census comparaison LFS  Similar concepts  Timely (release 20 days after reference week)  Monthly  High level geography  High level industry and occupation  Increased additional content Census  Similar concepts  Release 22 months following reference week  Once every five years  Detailed geography  Detailed industry and occupation  Can analyse relationships with other characteristics (Major field of study, mobility, place of work)

Vancouver, Oct More information 